 The Boston Globe reports: Buyers, sellers swarm secondhand shops
Boutiques are folding and fewer buyers and sellers are going to a shrinking number of retail trade shows. But Cohn is getting a lot of company at consignment, resale, and thrift stores, from parents shopping for back-to-school clothes to sales reps trying to squeeze cash out of samples no one else will buy.
"There's a panic right now, and everyone's scared out there," Lucky You co-owner Dina Kimmel said. "But resale is booming."
Consignment stores sell goods for individuals, who technically own the item until the sale goes through and they receive a portion of the transaction. High-end consignment typically is referred to as resale. Thrift or charity businesses usually stock their stores through donations and keep all the revenue.
In a survey conducted by the National Association of Resale & Thrift Shops comparing sales for April 2007 and April 2008 at 185 stores, 75 percent said their sales had increased, 80 percent reported a jump in new customers, and 65 percent noted a boost in suppliers. Just 10 percent said sales decreased.
Department store sales fell 5.7 percent from July 2007 to the same month this year, and the specialty apparel sector skidded 5.5 percent, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers. Labels: Middle Class Crunch |
